Motion Picture Daily (Jan-Mar 1947)

FIRST IN FILM NEWS J \ J£y6i. NO. 21 MOTION PICTURE DAILY NEW YORK, U. S. A., THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 1947 TEN CENTS Kirsch Will Continue as Allied Head Myers Lauds Justice Dept. In Annual Report Washington, Jan. 29. — Jack Kirsch of Chicago will continue as president of Allied States for another year, it was learned today as the Allied board prepared to convene at the Statler Hotel here on Friday for its annual meeting. Abram F. Myers, chairman of the board and general counsel, and William L. Ainsworth, treasurer, are other Allied officers scheduled for reelection. In addition to officers, the board will designate members of the executive committee and the Caravan committee. In his annual report to the board, Myers will cite high film rentals as the major industry problem which remains unsolved on a national basis. The report will recommend that Allied commend the Department of Jus(Continued on page 5) US Is Resorting to Independents to Push Film Program Faced with a threatened drastic cut, on July 1, in its $2,600,000 motion picture budget, the U. S. State Department is moving to make maximum use of the appropriation for the current fiscal year, ending July 1, especially in the production field, according to Hamilton MacFadden of the Department's New York office. MacFadden now is in Hollywood completing arrangements for the production of approximately 160 reels of short subjects, some of which will be four reels in length, the others tworeelers. A total of $685,000 has been earmarked for these pictures, to be made on a contract basis. So far, only two are in work, and time for beginning and completing the remainder is slipping away, because, under Government regulations, any appropriated funds hot expended by July 1 cannot be carried over to the next fiscal year. Although the Department had hoped (.Continued on page 6) May Lease Theatres For 'Arch' lst-Runs Following a plan inaugurated by Samuel Goldwyn this week, Enterprise Productions may lease theatres throughout the country for pre-release roadshow engagements of "Arch of Triumph," Charles Einfeld, president of the company, said here yesterday. The leasing method, designed to ob (Continued on page 6) House Passes Excise Levy on Admissions Washington, Jan. 29. — Advocates of continued war-time excise taxe rates on admissions and other items scored an initial victory in the House today when they overwhelmingly beat down a move to open the legislation to amendments. The voice vote to leave the bill retaining the high war-time levies unchanged presaged its passage later in the day. The tax measure now goes to the Senate where public hearings on it may be held. FCC Is Shown RCA's Color Television Princeton, N. J., Jan. 29. — RCA's all-electronic, simultaneous color television was demonstrated here today to the Federal Communications Commission as the latter continued its investigation of the feasibility of granting to Columbia Broadcasting its petition for ultra-high-frequency standards for commercial color telecasting. RCA is among those strongly opposing the commercialization of color television at present. The program originated at the RCA laboratories here and was transmitted to Penn's-Neck Community Club, a distance of about half a mile, where FCC studied reception. British Unions Rebel Against US Combines Less than twenty-four hours after one of the biggest American-British film deals in history had been signed, the Film Industry Employes Council today violently attacked HollywoodLondon motion-picture combines and demanded nearly complete socialization of the industry in Great Britain according to press dispatches reaching here last night. Warner Brothers and the Associated British Picture Corporation announced on Tuesday that they had agreed to join forces to make six (.Continued on page 6) Defendants Meet On Appeal Study Attorneys for distributors met here yesterday at the law office of John Caskey, 20th Century-Fox counsel, to work out preliminaries in their likely appeal of the New York Federal Court's decree decision. Doubt Precedent if Schine Wins Appeal The U. S. Supreme Court can reverse the partial-divestiture order in the Schine anti-trust case and then, without any breach of logic, order the complete divorcement of exhibition from distribution in a decision on the Government's appeal of the industry anti-trust suit, in the opinion of Willard McKay, counsel for Schine Chain Theatres, Inc. Granting a recent Department of Justice contention that the high tribunal cannot logically uphold the Buffalo Federal District Court's decree in the Schine case without following with a divorcement order in the New (Continued on page 6) Paramount Product Conferences Start Hollywood, Jan. 29. — Conferences on the company's domestic and foreign production plans got under way today at the Paramount studios with most of the company's top executives in attendance. Home-office executives participating in the meetings are Adolph Zukor, chairman of the board ; Barney Balaban, company president; Charles M. Reagan, vice-president in charge of (Continued on page 6) Brooker Says Benton Criticism Correct Washington, Jan. 29. — Assistant Secretary of State William Benton's critical remarks about the film industry were "accurate reporting" of the facts, Floyd Brooker, film chief of the U. S. Office of Education, said here today in an address before the Washington Film Council. Referring to Benton's statement in Chicago that "Europe looked with fear on the spread of cultural imperialism through motion pictures," Bfooker defended the Benton speech', which brought a blast from Joyce (.Continued on page 6) Set N.Y. Meet For Launching Of M.P. Forum All Independents Asked To Attend on March 10 St. Louis, Jan. 29. — The first meeting of independent exhibitors from all over the country to discuss formation of a motion picture forum to hear and endeavor to resolve internal trade grievances will be held in New York on March 10 11, Fred W e h r e n berg, president of Motion Pict u r e Theatre Owners of America, announced today. I n v i t a tions have been sent to heads of all national and regional exhibitor organizations, Wehr(Continued on page 6) Fred Wehrenberg: Myers Asks Allied To 'Table' Forum Washington, Jan. 29. — Sounding an almost unrelievedly pessimistic note on the prospects of an improvement in exhibitor-distributor relationships, Abram F. Myers, chairman and general counsel of Allied States, declares in his annual report that Allied's participation in any movement with that as its aim should be de (Continued on page 5) Church Group Sets 7 for Production The first seven films to be produced by the Protestant Film Commission, interdenominational motion picture agency of U. S. Protestant churches in this country, were announced yes(Continucd on page 6) In This Issue "Odd Man Out" and "Song of Scheherazade" are reviewed on page 4.